Gamesa Corporación Tecnológica (Zamudio, Vizcaya, Spain), a global developer and manufacturer of wind turbines, on October 4th, 2012 announced that it is poised for further technological and industrial diversification in solar photovoltaics. Its 1 MW PLUS central inverter, a water-cooled device for utility-scale PV plants, will be launched in the first quarter of 2013.
The company reportedly capitalises on its technological and industrial success of recent years and the experience of its subsidiary, Gamesa Electric, in the electric equipment design and manufacturing business.
“We have invested in technology and manufacturing development in recent years and gained wide-ranging know-how and competitiveness in the electric components field, an achievement underpinned by our track record in the wind power business,” said Gamesa Operations Managing Director Ricardo Chocarro.
“This process has enabled us to make a qualitative leap forward in our technical and manufacturing capabilities, which we now want to leverage and capitalise on more intensely, devoting more resources to other industrial businesses in which we have been a player for many years.”
Gamesa Electric has installed more than 1,500 photovoltaic central inverters worldwide
In the power electronics sector, the company operates primarily in solar photovoltaic in international markets: Gamesa Electric has on own account installed more than 1,500 photovoltaic central inverters worldwide to date and sells solutions to facilitate the integration of renewable energy to power grids.
India, China, Eastern Europe, the United States, Latin America generally and South Africa are target markets for Gamesa Electric in the photovoltaic industry. To this end, the first quarter of 2013 will see the market launch of the company’s latest development: the 1 MW PLUS central inverter, a water-cooled device for utility-scale PV plants.
Commercial relationships with China’s Sky Solar
In 2012 Gamesa Electric has reportedly been awarded several major supply contracts for its main business lines. In the photovoltaic market, the company has forged commercial relationships with the international PV developer Sky Solar (China) to supply 10 of its PLUS range inverters, each with capacity of 500 kW, for a PV solar farm in Bulgaria. Meanwhile, it has ventured into India, a new market, commissioning its first sites.
With manufacturing plants in Spain and China and a global sales and maintenance network, Gamesa Electric is developing projects in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa in the power electronics and electric motors and generators markets, its two main business lines.
The company currently derives 25% of its sales from industrial markets such as hydropower, solar photovoltaic, nuclear and marine, while its forecasts indicate that in 2013 these sectors will account for approximately 40% of its sales.
Courtesy: Gamesa Electric